BaseNZ.com - Wanaka/Snow/Life

Quiksilver, That's it, That's all Movie Premiere

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 02:01:00 +0000

Okay, so I have to admit, I was curious to know more about the Travis Rice film That's it That's all before the premiere this week.

I was already pretty stoked to go on Wednesday night screening, but now I'm completely amping for it, its gonna be sa-weet on the big screen.

So check out the official website and watch the trailer, if you already haven't, it looks so dope!

peace amy :)

Snow Stock is ON!!

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 03:14:00 +0000

Yo Crew,
if you weren't already aware, Billabong are running the newly named Snowstock event at Snowpark starting tomorrow. This event is going to be huge, with a 3 star rated TTR(ticket to ride) Big Air so you're going to have some big names around looking to get points on the board for the TTR championship. There's also the Nixon Quarterpipe Throwdown and the Panasonic Night Fight Rail Jam, so it's shaping up to be a killer event, of course there's going to be plenty of music and partying going down as well, so get yourself up there.
chur
Matt

Cantebury Mission

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 03:10:00 +0000

What an amount of snow. The Canterbury high country is so loaded this year that first ever lines are are having tracks left down them.

I packed up my car, Magoo jumped in the back seat and we headed to Methven. The weather was no go on Saturday which made for preparation for the Annual Casa Del Caird party and Jemu's house.

Yes, it lived up to its reputation and was a fantastic night.

Sunday the weather was great but we were a little late rising so missed out as the road closed due to full car parks and no doubt way to many people.

Then Monday came along. Another beautiful day. As we drove up I was amazed and the amount of snow up at Mt Hutt. I had done many a season at Hutt over the years but have never seen it like it is this season. Prob the best since the infamous 1992 season.

We had a great crew shredding, Q Diddy, Werhle, Big T, Young Josh Brown and myself. As I went to get my camera we met up with Miles Holden (photographer), so gone with my cam.

Under the car park down to the triple chair has some of the most fun terrain around. We shredded it hard. Rock drops, Hips and still bits of fresh. Lovin it.

Then we walked along the road a little and dropped in for some fresh lines. We pottered round and did some work taking photos. Grom boy (Josh) had the line of the session dropping from a rock and landing between rocks. Freaked him but he stomped. Young courage ah..... Super fun session.

Q Diddy was also on the vid cam for a little getting the shots. Keep a check on www.snowflick.co.nz for a video of the day.

Another day was on the cards but the weather was again turning bad so I decided to head back south. Lucky I did as I woke to snow in the backyard. What an epic winter so far.

Stay tuned for more action. Next time I hope to have some photos.

Thanks.

Niels C

Lil Jon will be at the MTV Snowjam!

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 01:37:00 +0000

okay here's the thing about the MTV snow jam announcement. Now i pretty much let the announcement go as it was, but i had to change the by-line.

I couldn't stop cracking up at the idea of Lil Jon in Methven. WHAT!? That's right in Methven. WHAT?!

OKAY.... Well i just keep thinking back to the dave chapelle skits of Lil Jon and then I think about the Lil Jon music clips and it doesn't seem to connect... the whole him being out in the woop woops YAY-YEAH! I mean will he where will he wear that crown? to steelies?

Is anyone going to see Lil Jon because you just love him??? Or maybe are you going because it's something to do??? Or are you going because Dave Chapelle does the best Lil Jon impersonation and you really don't know a single song of Lil Jon's but you know he says, WHAT?! OKAY! YAY-YEAH! I know which question I would be answering.

From the pics can you tell who's who???

peace amy :)

Sweet stretch of sunny days!

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 00:30:00 +0000

Did anyone else notice the real calm and sunny days that we were o so lucky to get strung together for the last few days?

I noticed and I actually did something about it. I went riding 4 times last week. Now that may not be impressive to some, but for me, that's a biggie. Considering I had only been out 3 times so far this winter, prior to last weeks 4 times banger!

My sweet week started on Sunday, with a low vis day at cardrona, where i was so so very thankful for all the orange flags ski patrol put on the trails, so i could find my way around the mt.

I was a bit off it, after sunday, but my mood picked up again on tues as the bluebird skies took over. I got a text that morning from my mate asking me to go riding at Cardies again, and I thought I should give it another go. While the wind was high, the sun was shining and the blue skies just made the day. So super stoked. We met up with some other mates on the mt, and had gt's.

I got a lift to qt that tues night, after a deliciously yummy bevo from barluga (lychee liqueur is so yum), with every intention to ride Remarks the next day with the bf. The next morning i received a sweet phone call to go on a heli-board mission... so i bailed on remarks and my rubber arm was twisted to join the mission.

This was my first time heli-boarding, and the experience is one i will cherish forever, and I cannot even give it the credit it deserves in this blog. All i know is this: people if you haven't heli-boarded yet, you must do so, and if you have, I hope you loved it! I can't describe the feeling of 007 excitement i had, as we drove out to sunshine bay and was met by a boat (i dont know much about boats, but it was a nice one), that took us out across Lake Wakitipu for 30 mins to meet our chopper at Mt Nicholas Station!

My nerves were all over the show! I wasn't sure i could heli-board, I was thinking i might just sink in the snow, i didn't think i could connect my turns, and i had visions of me turning into one of those looney tunes snowball as i rolled all the way down. My fears were completely unfounded, and managed to dumbfound myself as i realised i wasn't nearly as bad as i thought.

We did four runs and i was definitely knackered on the fourth run, but it wouldn't stop me. Every time i looked up and saw the line i just carved, i was gobsmacked, as i tried to believe that was actually MY LINE!!!!

The day was one i won't soon forget. I followed up wednesdays epic heli day, with a super fun and mellow day on Sat at the Remarks. We widened the stance on my board that day and immediate felt the difference, felt way stronger. I've still got to get the nerve to hit anything in the stash, but my bf assures me (after taking me on a tour of the stash) that there are plenty of features i sure can hit. Sweet 50-50's and brilliant boardslides throughout the stash here i come! i am ready now... i mean i was riding 4 days this last week, i'm such a pro now!

peace amy

Warriors Attack!

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 02:48:00 +0000

No, not the Auckland Warriors, it's the Stanton Warriors. One of the U.K.'s biggest breaks producers, voted best breaks Dj's in the world, they will be playing at the Wanaka Centre tomorrow night with Kiwi dance floor destroyers, The Upbeats, all as part of the Gravis Open Sessions. So it's set to be a wicked night, bummer if you missed out on tickets, see you on the dance floor if you got some :-).

Freeride, Freestyle, Just Ride Free

Matt

plans for the night?

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 00:21:00 +0000

There is no shortage of things happening in Wanaka all the time and I always think that I'll hit this party or go to that bar, but then it doesn't happen, and i think it's all g, cos the next day, there'll still be something to do.

I was thinking about hitting the IPOD Battle at the Red Rock tonight. I went 2 weeks ago and was gobsmacked by the crazy crowds of people in the bar, when i showed up at 11pm, normally Wednesday night's are quiet there, but not that Wednesday, and i'm sure tonight is going to be repeat of the craziness.

For those that missed out on it last time, let me give you a quick re-cap of things you can expect tonight:

Heaps of lip-synching by the crews battling it out on the stage. They get so hard out into it!
Dancing like rump-shakers, well that is what Khandro from the Base Crew did, while throwin down a sick Snoop dogg track
Crowd sing-a-longs, Rage
and lots of really good crowd pleasing songs, from MJ, to Gwen, to Rage, to music i never hear before.

peace amy :)

New Skullcandy range available Monday 28th

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 04:52:00 +0000

Oh my god, the new Skullcandy range is off the hook.They have gone completely OTT this time, crazy new colours and finishes, sick new products, ah it's all good. Some highlights for me would be the Skullcandy Double Agent Headphones which just takes any standard SD card with tunes on it and your away, no wires, full control right on the can. I'll also be getting a Skullcandy Pipe, which is not puff the magic dragon styles but a desktop iPod speaker tube dock thingy, fits most iPod/iPhones etc killer. On top of the new stuff they have gone wild with new colours for some fav styles like the Lowrider, Gi, Ti and Smokin' Buds, brights are definitely in. To see the whole range check out SKULLCANDY

Breaking NEWS - Base Team Rider Niels Ijpylaar has won the annual NZSnowboader Banked Slalom at Treblecone today. Edging out big riders like MArcus Wherle, Deni Beven and JMS, Nielsy took 1st place honours by over a second. Riding a K2 Zeppelin, Niels' boardercross background kept him in good stead. Full story and pics soon.

A Big Birthday Jam & A Storm Brews

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 06:25:00 +0000

Despite the weather the groms and bros turned out for the K2 21st Birthday Jam at Snowpark Saturday night, with 52 guys and 12 girls getting their jib on. After nealry getting blown back down the valley we moved the daytime demo setup from the base of the chair up next to the woolshed where we were nice and close to the bar..... anyway, 5pm rolled around and Big Si gave the crew a briefing and we were up the chair ready to Jam. Some killer tricks were stomped all over the rail features, with standout riding from Base team riders Mack James and Tim Herbert, my fav being Tim stripping while sliding the long box. In the end it was all about the prizes for most of the crew, with $7000 to give away everyone got something cool, Leon Mckay took home the K2 WWW, winning thru the rounds of rock,paper,scissors. After the prize giving the dj's hit the decks and we partied on till the wee hours. All in all a bloody good night and a great comp, big thanks to K2, Session and Smith for all the swag and Big Si for organizing everything, we'll definitely be back next year.
And in case you haven't seen the weather there's a kick ass low coming our way, which should mean some fresh snow on the hills tomorrow.
catch ya on the hill
matt

K2 Snowboards 21st Birthday Jam

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 23:01:00 +0000

K2 Snowboards is celebrating 21 years of making shredtastic snowboarding gear this year. To celebrate K2 are holding a night time jam comp under lights at snowpark this Sat 19th from 5pm. The event will be a loose jam format with bomb loads of prizes and product giveaways. The event is free to enter and open to all age groups, abilities and genders.

Event and Event After party theme: Old School Sweaters... come dressed in your favourite old school sweater and be in to win wicked prizes.
There will be special evening rates for all competitors without a season pass = $20 Adults, $12 youth. Event and after party is free. Snowpark is open exclusively for this event, registration is from 3pm in woolshed, competition starts at 5 pm.

I will be up at the park all day with the K2 demo fleet so come on up and try and some of the new boards on offer this year, and yes there will be WWW Rocker's available to try. After the comp their will be a sick after party with some killer dj's and drink specials, so bring an old school sweater and get on down.

Matt

Night Riding Cancelled

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 04:24:00 +0000

Hey Crew,
Night Riding at SnowPark has been canceled for tonight. Strong wind gusts have the lift on hold already and the weather is coming in, more snow on the way. Don't forget the quarterpipe comp tomorrow night.
peace
M

it's all about sweet 50-50's

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 05:43:00 +0000

Tell ya what, it was the first night riding session of the season, and seeing as i'm still doing 50-50's over flat down rails, small 15' kickers, and battleships i wasn't gonna start my season off by hitting the jib line at Snowpark. Instead, i settled for some bailey's hot chocolates and warmer temps inside the woolshed. Thing is i dont reckon i was settling at all. While my mates did indulge in the jib line and really enjoyed, I had a pretty sweet time inside.

So far its been about 1.5 wks since the season has started here in Wanaka, and i still haven't been up to go riding. I attempted this past weekend to go to the Remarkables. Drove up to QT on friday night and woke up nice and early, dancin around in my thermals while i got ready to go... straight back to bed - closed day.

Here's the thing. i was super amped to go to Remarks, but not so much for Coronet Peak. My last impression of the Peak was of the solid ice run (note that it was run - singular), i did where i tried my best not to turn cos i shuddered everytime i heard that scrapy ice against board noise it was making.

Personally now i'm just hangin out for more snow. I mean the winter isn't going anywhere, and while i might not have been the first one to hit the mt's this season, by all means, its only just started, so i've got heaps to look forward too.

Maybe i'll practice landing on my feet coming out the pipe for the New Electric Quarter Pipe Comp on this week end at Snowpark, or else try bombin down the mt, chinese downhill style, to get ready to look for the Yetti up at Remarks on the Stash grand opening day.

Either way i don't need to practice my sweet 50-50's this season, i've perfected it!

Amy

Just in Time

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 04:19:00 +0000

Ahh, so stoked, as is everyone in Wanaka I'd say, especially the mountain staff. Snow has been falling steadily all day on the hills today, so after the wee dump on Monday we're now looking good for getting to shred some snow on the weekend. Check out our webcams for the view.

chur
Matt

Ahh the white stuff

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 00:14:00 +0000

Hey Team, the peaks were coated in some beautiful snow this morning, even Mt Roy had a good dusting. Snow Park have got their guns blasting again as you can see in this pic. Hopefully we'll see some lifts running this weekend ;-) fingers crossed.
peace
m

More Snow?

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 03:51:00 +0000

Well, maybe, MetVuw is saying there will be wet stuff, whether it's frozen or not is another story. Snowpark has moved their opening day from today to next Wednesday, marketing manager Claire said they want to have good coverage and all the features ready to roll when the peeps hit the first lift of the season. Wiggum have got their Friday the 13th Halloween party at Red Rock, tonight should be a ripper, get on down if you're going to be in town, i know a pile of the Base crew will be there causing trouble.
Have good weekend all

matt

More Coming

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 03:43:00 +0000

Snow that is! hey team, looks like a good dump is on the way this weekend. MOst hills have been getting snowmaking underway with great conditions until last night. though Treble Cone had a pump blow up, which is a bummer, i'm sure they'll be back into it asap. The Wanaka Mountain Bike Club had a video premiere last night as a fundraiser for the Lismore Bike Park, a good crew rolled in in support. The 443 crew have done a wicked job at the park, it's looking amazing, if you're in town and want 2 wheeled fun it's only a five minute ride from town, too good.
Coronet Peak is planning on opening tomorrow, good luck to all who venture out, hopefully for their sake the 130Km/hr winds don't materialize. Let us know how it went if you're heading up there.

Live Large
M

IT'S SNOWING.......YEAH FOR IT!!

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Fri, 23 May 2008 00:06:00 +0000

Howdy Crew,

well the wonderful white stuff has been falling steadily today with the Treblecone webcam showing about 10cms at the base, and i know for sure that there was 30cm at the captain's cafe at Cardrona as of yesterday morning, thanks to one of the boys working on the new cafe renovation. So with today's falls the start of the season is shaping up to be a corker. Base team rider, demo guy and all round crazy man Luke Potts is heading up Cardrona way later today to get his shred on. No doubt he'll be earning his turns the hard way.
So let us know if there's any snow round your way, or if you've already been out to get your shred on to. I'll be happy to post any pics you get.

Fingers crossed it's stays cold and keeps dumping

peace, live large

Matt

It's all NEW

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 02:43:00 +0000

Hey Crew,

well, it's been wee while between posts, but i've been a very busy bee. we've got tons of new gears up on the site to check out. Hardware wise we've got all the new 2009 Bataleon boards, check out the new tech on these triple base boards. Also up are the 2009 Nitro Snowboards & Bindings. For skis we've got new 2009 Dynastar skis , Nordica skis, and Rossignol Ski Boots. In goggle land we've got Anon goggles and Von Zipper goggles up and in stock.
Album of the week is Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours check it out!!

live large
Matt

09 K2 Boards Now Up!

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 22:48:00 +0000

Hey Crew,
well it's been a busy week down Wanaka way. I had all 4 of my wisdom teeth at once(not recommended) so it has been squishy food for me all week. But i got back to work and loaded up 2009 K2 Snowboards onto the site. The 09 K2 range is looking super rad this year, a few highlights would be the Rocker Collection, the Gyrator, the Turbo Dream and the WWW Rocker. For those unfamiliar these boards are all made with varying degrees of rocker which is similar to a surfboard, the design replaces camber, a standard throughout the industry, with a slightly upward curving tip and tail that helps the board rise to the surface of the snow while the rider maintains a centered balance for maximum control, forward or switch. I rode the Gyrator in Japan in Feb and it was super fun to ride, really stable in the pow and always kept the nose up, but was still really solid on the groomers, the perfect freestyle powder board. The Turbo Dream is the board we're all itching to ride, i spotted Shaun Mckay on a Turbo Dream in Niseko, Japan while we were there. It's an all mountain freestyle board with less rocker then the Gyrator, this is the future right here people, plus it has the best board name i've heard in years, who doesn't wanna dream in turbo? The WWW Rocker builds on the momentum the WWW already has by adding Jib Rocker to an already killer design. So now all those butters and nose presses will be even easier. And the colours are crazy, check the pic! Also new to the range is the K2 Zero, this board is the first board on the market to try and reduce the industries impact on the environment. By using high tech materials and reducing the amount of materials, glues and resins in the design as well as the energy used in manufacture K2 are leading the way in creating a sustainable future for snowboarding. Chris is going to be riding a K2 Zero this season so we'll get to see how it holds up to a full season of abuse. Another notable addition to the range is the K2 Fling, which is like a Darkstar for girls, we're betting this combination is going to rock big time so we've got a bunch in Demo for all the girls out there to try. New K2 Boots and Bindings are also up and available now.
I'll have the Lowdown on the 09 Ride range later in the week, and 09 Rossignol skis should be up in the next day or so.

live large, ride free

matt

The Birds are here

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 03:56:00 +0000

Easter weekend in Wanaka is a crazy time, especially when Warbirds over Wanaka is on, with an extr 100,00 people in the region it was always going to be busy. Our Annual Easter Sale proved a great success and the weather really turned it on with blue skies and no wind for most of the weekend.
But now it's back to the grind stone with plenty to do. I've started loading 2009 K2 snowboards
and i'll be adding more this week. I'm taking preorders for all 2009 product for delivery as soon as we can get the gear which should be over the next 4 - 5 weeks. 2009 Ride boards and 2009 Rossi skis will also be loaded next week.
A big thanks to Jas and Johnny for coming and helping out in the shop over the Easter break.
We've got new winter stock already arriving with 686 already in and 32 boots arriving today. Will be getting this stuff up on the site as fast as possible.

Go well, Live Large

Matt

Tokyo Town then Home

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 02:01:00 +0000

After our arduous journey to Tokyo as detailed in my previous post it was a relief just to get some sleep in a real bed rather then a train seat. After some much needed rest Tokyo turned on the charms with perfect sunny weather( still cold though) and we hit Shibuya for some shopping, and it has to be said Japan is one of the best places to shop anywhere, with something for everyone from upscale boutiques and department stores to quirky second hand clothing stores and specialty stores. If you're a sneaker freak, tokyo is heaven with crazy kicks in zillions of colours. The toy stores were off the hook also with either 5 story mega stores with every stuffed toy ever made or crazy comic stores with life size star wars characters to Mr T Bobble heads.
After a second day of shopping and site seeing we were well ready for our overnight flight back home. Thankfully this part of the trip was totally uneventful.
Once back in Wanaka it was back to business and here i am getting back to sending out customer orders and writing orders for next years stock.
Stay tuned for the lowdown for some great specials we've got coming up and new 2009 Boards and Skis available soon.

peace
matt

An ordeal

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 00:18:00 +0000

Sat morning everyone was all packed up ready to go, half the crew were on a 9 am bus to Sapporo to meet flights and half at 10am. Half of the first crew were going to Tokyo for a few days and half thru to Aus or NZ, same in the 2nd crew. It was still snowing heavily and the wind was blowing hard with most of the lifts on hold. The 2 hr bus ride was slowing going with the conditions, and one car that attempted to overtake our bus spun out and off the road into a snow bank right in front of us. We arrived at the airport and checked in to find out that most of the first crew had got out on the last flight before the weather window had closed. Pete was the only one left from that crew who was on a different flight, which had been cancelled. the rest of us were on a JAL flight to Tokyo. We boarded the plane fairly late, then sat on the tarmac with snow dumping down. I was keen to get on our way, but was a little worried about the weather. After an hour or so, they pulled us off the plane. we had to wait at the gate, as the flight was delayed, not cancelled. After waiting for 3 hours with out eh flight being cancelled, the call was finally made. During this time we had been desperately trying to find hotel rooms, with no luck, the whole place was booked out due to flights being cancelled all day. It looked like we wouldn't get out till Monday. So, we heard from the crew who made it to Tokyo that Pete had booked on the train to Tokyo, sweet. We get down to the station and get tickets and wait. The station is actually closed due to the snow so there loads of people piling up in the station. When they opened the platform we all rush down and cram onto a commuter train to get to Sapporo station to get the first train of our journey. We stand on that train for an hr or more, waiting for snow to be cleared. we end up making it to the next station where we can meet our train. That train gets cancelled, but another train comes thru that some Japaneses people tell us is going half way to where we want to go, so rather then get stuck in this freezing train station we go for it. Stomping thru 3 feet of snow on the platform we jump on the train. It's full, fi and i manage to score seats at the very back of the train, the boys , Adam, Tom and Pete are in the compartments between carriages. We go about 4-5kms and stop. And there we stay, for 13hrs. No food, no water. 20 below outside, the wind rocking the train side to side( it was a tilt train) we all spent the night sleeping fitfullly and dreaming of food and moving trains only to wake up and find ourselves hungry and in the same spot. We finally moved at around midday on Sunday, 20mins later we stopped again, for an hour. Eventually we got moving and got out of the wind that had kept us stuck for so long. At a station and hour or so along they loaded on a pile of drinks and started handing them out along with space food stick type snack bars. When we got to the trains final stop, we had 5 mins to make our next connection, there were TV crews on the platform trying to interview people as they came off. The crazy thing was none of the Japanese complained, on the train or to the TV crews. If it had happened in a western country, there would have been a riot on that train, for sure. So we make the next train, but still no food, we get drinks from a cart on the train and some snack foods. After another 3 hours or so( lost sense of time along here somewhere) we change trains again, only just making it to meet a Shinkansen( bullet train) for the final leg to Tokyo. Pete points out after 1 1/2 hours that we had already traveled further then we had to meet this train, it did go over 350Kms/hr. After what seemed like eternity we arrived in Tokyo at 11.30 pm Sunday night. We had left Niseko at 10 am Saturday morning, so we had been going for 37 1/2 hours, and it had been 34 hrs since we had eaten a proper meal.
We all took cabs to our hotels and crashed out. Lesson learned, be careful what you wish for, more snow can be great while you're on the hill, but once you start traveling it can shut down your whole world.

Back to Wanaka tomrrow, looking forward to my own bed.

Matt

The last days of shredding

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 00:05:00 +0000

Well thursday last week dawned as a good powder day, but turned out to be quite heavy going with wettish snow about 20-30cms deep. But as the temp dropped during the day the snow actually got much better, drying out and getting lighter. So the arvo runs were great, with good lines to be had thru the trees out wide off the gondy of goodness. There were good sections of untracked snow down low and we all made the most of them. Friday was a funny day, with anyone riding up high playing snowboarding gorillas in the mist. Suffice to say the vis was craptastic, at times down to 3 or 4 meters. But most soldiered on, it being the last day, so after an early lunch, we pushed out a bunch of runs off the gondola as the fog moved up high with the trees adding to the better vis. Thankfully the snow was holding up and there was plenty of soft chopped up pow to play in. As we arrived back at the chalet, the snow came in, hard. Always the way isn't it. So we made the most of it and went for an onsen(Japanese natural outdoor hotpools) with heavy snow pouring down and a cold beer in hand, it was a great way to end our time in Niseko. Then came the journey to Tokyo, which i'll get to next

Matt

Wednesday recap

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:11:00 +0000

Sadly no new snow on wednesday, but we did have a very nice sunny day. The snow actually held up really well, and we were able to find plenty of soft snow in the trees under the gondola.
Wee Alex had her first ever day on skis and absolutely loved it, no doubt she'll be back shredding powder with her mum and dad in years to come.
Wednesday was also Brenda's birthday, so after a great day of riding we all got together for dinner at the chalets, Brenda, Tony and Fi put together an awesome spread, with some great champagne and wine and lots of drinks. A bloody great night all round.

Matt

Let is shine

noreply@blogger.com (BaseNZ.com) — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 23:00:00 +0000

It had to stop some time, though we wish it didn't. After 6 days of constant snow the sun came out monday morning. Prue and Fi arrived Sunday night, so they were happy to have good visibility to get their bearings. The snow was actually really good, with off trail snow still soft and chalky and the groomers running like a dream. Tuesday dawned the same as Monday with blue skies and sunshine. So it was late starts for most of the crew, with a couple of us taking the day off to get over colds and have a rest after 9 straight days of riding. It was Brentski's last day so he got out there eventually. Tuesday night saw a big cook up at the chalet for everyone, which went down a treat. It's now Wednesday morning and Chris is working his breakfast magic ( he is the egg master) and the sun is out again, so it should be a nice day on the hill, foercast is for more snow tonight and tomorrow, so hopefully we'll get a couple of powder days for our last 2 days riding before we head out of Niseko. Matt